"We do this not to create Catholics, but because we are Catholic. It’s the social justice teachings of the church that drive us," says WJA director of counseling services Ann Clark. The tuition-free middle school explicitly addresses the spiritual and moral development of its students.

What war veterans need, says Rev. Dr. Rita Nakashima Brock of the Truth Commission on Conscience in War, "is for people to let them tell their stories and listen, and most congregations don’t really have a clue how to do that."

Gay marriage is not a campaign issue in Minnesota this season, and it’s not on the ballot. But the Catholic archbishop of Saint Paul and Minneapolis recently sent a message opposing gay marriage to every Catholic family in the state. Father David of McCauley of the Minnesota Catholic Conference ...